Converting True Dragons

[Cleon]

Just noticed an error in Pearl. She's got a "Spot 51+10wis" in Skills that should be "Spot +61".

How the blazes did we not notice that before I added it to the CC?

 

[Cleon]

Updating Opal the Sun Dragon Working Draft.



When they're all the domains, it's literally ALL OF THEM, not a selection.



It's perfectly legal to have a dragon be able to cast cleric list spells as arcane spells and NOT give it domains, so it might have been deliberate.

Or we just forgot.



I'd give him druid spells too. He is Lord of the Neutral Dragons after all, and what's more neutral in D&D than a Druid?

Putting together the above would make:

Spells: Opal is a 20th-level sorcerer and a 20th-level cleric. He can cast cleric spells and spells from cleric domains as arcane spells and can also cast druid spells as arcane spells or cleric spells. Opal has access to all the domains available to the neutral dragons he rules (For the amber, jacinth, jade, moonstone, Mystaran jade, Mystaran onyx, and pearl dragons, these are Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water and Weather). In his natural form, Opal can cast his spells with but a word.

Let's see:

Amber Dragon—No Domains, but can cast druid spells as arcane spells.
Jacinth Dragon—No Domains?
Jade Dragon—Plant and Trickery
Moonstone Dragon—Healing and Knowledge
Mystaran Jade Dragon—Charm, Knowledge, and Plant
Mystaran Onyx Dragon—Animal, Darkness, and Water
Pearl Dragon—Luck and Weather

I'll fill in the Domain Lists later:

1st level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
2nd level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
3rd level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
4th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
5th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
6th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
7th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
8th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.
9th level—Animal, Charm, Darkness, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Plant, Trickery, Water, Weather.

 

[Cleon]

So are we adding some domains to the Jacinth dragon?

The AD&D version "enjoys superior magical abilities—casting both wizard and priest spells" so it should certainly have been given cleric casting.

 

[freyar]

You have a Pearl in your Opal there. That looks pretty good, though as written it looks like Opal can cast druid spells as arcane spells but not as cleric spells.

Yeah, we definitely need to go back and add cleric casting and some domains to the jacinth dragon. Two out of Fire, Glory, and Magic seem about right for the domains, flavor-wise. What do you think?

 

[Cleon]

You have a Pearl in your Opal there. That looks pretty good, though as written it looks like Opal can cast druid spells as arcane spells but not as cleric spells.

Okay, I've changed it to "Opal is a 20th-level sorcerer and a 20th-level cleric. He can cast cleric spells and spells from cleric domains as arcane spells and can also cast druid spells as arcane spells or cleric spells."

Yeah, we definitely need to go back and add cleric casting and some domains to the jacinth dragon. Two out of

Would rather give them more than two domains as they're "superior" spellcasters and most metallic dragons get three:

Brass have Chaos and Knowledge.
Bronze have Animal, Law, and Water.
Copper have Chaos, Earth, and Trickery.
Gold Dragons have Law, Luck, and Good
Silver Silver Dragons have Air, Good, Law, and Sun.

Let's see, with out Neutral Gem Dragon conversions we've got:

Amber have none.
Jade have Plant and Trickery.
Moonstone have Healing and Knowledge.
Pearl have Luck and Weather.

Fire, Glory, and Magic seem about right for the domains, flavor-wise. What do you think?

Of those I only like Magic.

I don't care for Fire as none of our other Neutral Gem Dragons have elemental domains. If you want a "hot" domain how about Sun?

The problem with Glory is that's all about holy powers and this dragon is Neutral with a capital N.

They use "riddling talk and personal charm" which suggests Charm.

Also wouldn't mind Travel, if only because none of the SRD Dragons have that Domain.

 

[Cleon]

Also wouldn't mind Travel, if only because none of the SRD Dragons have that Domain.

Hmm, how about we the Amber Dragon two or three domains while we're at it?

They're a better candidate for Travel since Ambers are a nomadic species that "make no permanent lair, but range throughout the thickly carpeted expanse of their forest."

There's also multiple uses of meteorological analogies in their description (e.g. "An amber dragon’s personality is as mercurial as the shifting winds; they can be as gentle as a spring breeze, or as violent as a summer lightning storm" tempting me to add Weather.

So I'd suggest either "Plant and Travel" or "Plant, Travel, and Weather" for an Amber's Domains.

 

[freyar]

OK, for jacinth we have Charm, Magic, and Sun?

I kind of think that druid spells take the place of domains for the Amber. But I'll go along with Plant and Travel if you insist.

 

[Cleon]

OK, for jacinth we have Charm, Magic, and Sun?

I kind of think that druid spells take the place of domains for the Amber. But I'll go along with Plant and Travel if you insist.

Agreed, and I'll insist on the Domains for the Amber.

Will include the changes in the next Creature Catalog Download, whenever that'll be.

EDIT: While reformatting these two dragons for the next CC update I noticed they're both miscredited.

The Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Three that the Amber Dragon debuted in was published in 1996 not 1995.

The Jacinth Dragon first appeared in Dragon #158 (1990), not the Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume One as stated in the current CC, which also has the wrong date! The MCA1 was 1994 not 1995.